Jimmy Nelson

about

Jimmy "T99" Nelson (April 7, 1919 – July 29, 2007) was an American jump blues and rhythm & blues shouter and songwriter. With a recording career that spanned over 50 years, Jimmy "T99" Nelson became a distinguished elder statesman of American music. His best known recordings are "T-99 Blues" and "Meet Me With Your Black Dress On". Nelson notably worked with Duke Robillard and Otis Grand. Nelson got his start singing in church. In 1941, he saw a performance by Big Joe Turner while he was visiting Oakland, California, and realized he wanted to sing the blues. Turner taught Nelson about singing, performance and the music business. Nelson, in turn, absorbed the shouting style of his mentor. From 1951 through 1961, Jimmy Nelson and the Peter Rabbit Trio released eight singles with the Bihari Brothers' Modern/RPM label. The biggest of these was "T-99 Blues" (which referred to the old Texas Highway #99), which debuted in June 1951. It stayed on the US Billboard R&B chart for twenty-one weeks and reached number 1. In 1952, Nelson had another RPM hit with "Meet Me With Your Black Dress On." Nelson began touring, performing with bands led by Joe Liggins and Roy Milton, and playing venues including the Apollo and Howard theaters. He cut singles for a number of labels including Kent, Music City, Paradise and All Boy, and Chess (including for them the 1955 "Free and Easy Mind"). In 1955, Nelson met and married his Nettie (who is now deceased) and adopted Houston, Texas as his hometown. F

top songs

albums

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Theme Time Radio Hour with Your Host Bob Dylan

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The Chess Story 1947-1975 (1952-1954 Part Two) (Disc 4)

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Cry Hard Luck: The RPM and Kent Recordings 1951-61

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Essential Blues Anthology

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Theme Time Radio Hour With Your Host Bob Dylan [Disc 1]

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Essential Blues Anthology [Disc 2]

The Music City Story

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TTRH2 - 16 - Lock and Key

Cry Hard Luck

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TTRH Season 1 - 39 - Tears

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The History of Rhythm and Blues - Disc 4

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Essential Blues Anthology (Amazon Edition)

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